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^04.05.11    Parts Five and Six of the made-in-Stoke-on-Trent vampire series Blood & Bone China are available online...

^29.04.11    Shropshire & Telford Artists in Residence programme is calling for Emerging Freelance Artists and Dancers. They have two placements for dance practitioners , with another five opportunities for practitioners in drama, music, new media and visual art. They aim to support dancers and artists who are at an early stage of their career, and who wish to develop their practice and work collaboratively with schools to learn about ways of developing creative curricula. Each placement involves 5 x 3 hour sessions in one allocated school, a total of 15 hours of work. Total fee for each placement is £270, travel is not included. Send an up-to-date C.V. detailing your artistic practice and a short statement explaining the following: Why you wish to apply for the position; Which preferred local area you wish to work in; What you would offer during a school placement; How would a placement benefit your future working practice. Deadline: 17th May 2011. Full details from Judy McFall at Telford Culture Zone at:  judy.mcfall@telford.gov.uk

"to undertake explorative research, with the freedom to work within the [ceramics] industry to explore, challenge and work with its materials, processes and products."

There are also five small £1000 commissions for new work to be shown at the former Spode site from October 2011.

"for bright, innovative, entrepreneurial people who are reliable, well-connected online and in their local area, and who are interested in film and/or social issues."

"all regulations identified as burdensome [on small businesses] would be removed unless good reasons are given for them to stay;"

"to help young talent to bridge the development gap from school or college to becoming a working artist."

"Writing East Midlands is looking for a Marketing Intern to support the Alt.Fiction Festival, part of our year-round programme of fantasy, science fiction, and horror literature events."

"The candidate must be a good storyteller and have the ability to tackle projects creatively and to a brief. The candidate will ideally need to be located locally to Stoke-on-Trent in order to be flexible enough to meet the job expectations. We are looking for a talented editor who can manage projects from beginning to end, work to tight deadlines and achieve high quality results. You will be working on Final Cut Studio 3, and so experience is essential. The right person needs to have a passion for storytelling and postproduction and demonstrate a willingness to tackle non-broadcast videos creatively. You will be using your initiative when working alone and have good communication skills when working with a director/producer."

"Far from the dark, astringent territory of The Damned United or the Red Riding trilogy, it's closer in kind to Brassed Off and The Full Monty, fusing politics and romance to create a charming ... portrayal of working-class dream life." ... "honest, likeable" — The Daily Telegraph.

"This workshop provides a unique opportunity to take part in innovative and inspirational self-portrait drawing session. It is a contemporary take on traditional drawing techniques using a camera as a tool to create self-portrait with ideas and concepts inspired by your own ID card photos. Participants will have the opportunity to learn observational drawing skills and experiment with a variety of media. They will have the chance to draw their own ID-style photos that are to be taken on the day and provided at the start of the workshop. The drawing will reproduce the photo but also use imaginative ways to restructure the work. Participants will learn to work with Graphite Powder, on high quality paper, hand made brushes, props, and with a range of drawing materials/techniques to make inspired drawings and gain insight into this specific technique. All levels of ability are welcome. Materials are provided but you can bring any additional materials that you wish to use."

"Invited guest speakers will represent a range of key contemporary art world stake holders including: private collectors, artists and those involved in selling artworks at fairs, as well as through museum print programmes and galleries, to speak about the topic and consider how the market is developed at various levels. There will be a combination of presentations to all attendees which will be followed in the afternoon by collectors "in conversation" in addition to several workshops."

"ask a friendly geek to help you get something done. All reasonable requests considered in return for buying a day or supporter ticket."

"a hands-on experience, accompanied by some spoken word from a fabulous friend of mine, a guest-speaker on craft, some decent music and a big old mingle. Hope you can make it!"

"All of our tutors are very well qualified to both teach and perform at a very high standard. They are well-known and highly respected on the National Folk Circuit, and abroad. Many are teachers of music, or lecturers at colleges of music. The caller is also of national repute and is also a musician."

1. A number of individual two-hour community Ballroom & Modern Sequence workshops. Times to be agreed with dance artist(s).

2. A series of eight 'beginners learn to' Ballroom & Modern Sequence classes, each 1 hour 30 minutes in duration. Lessons could be during the day or early evening.

1) 17th March 2011. What Intellectual Property Do Your Own? At Stafford.

2). 13th April 2011. Commercialisation of R&D. At Stafford.

3). 16th March 2011. New Product Development. At Newcastle-under-Lyme.

4). 2nd November 2011. New Product Development. At Stafford.

"Using camera trickery, forced perspective, make-up, props, prosthetics and lighting we will create a staged tableaux, which you will then film or photograph to take away. This workshop will give you the chance to dress up, make up, build props, be a director and have a go with a camera."

"The workshop will outline print methods that require little specialist equipment with an emphasis on using inexpensive and readily available materials to produce effective results quickly. Explore what a print can be, using alternative printing mediums such as emulsion paint, inkjet transfers, and experiment with a range of papers, surfaces and backgrounds. You will be shown some basic techniques which can then be layered for more interesting results."

"This workshop will provide an opportunity to learn how to create a digital installation using video and sound. Through recording, editing, burning, and installing, the session will allow participants to work together to create a temporary artwork. Participants will be guided through the stages needed in order to create a work of multimedia art; from the beginning of the ideas process through to the final outcome. Victoria will present a selection of audiovisual works at the beginning of the session to inform and inspire. Each participant will then be given an activity, in which they will use digital technology in conjunction with their own ideas to create a new piece of work. The individual works will then be installed together, to make a larger artwork."

"Are you interested in learning how to use the web in new ways for work and play? If so come along to the friendly Social Media Cafe. Includes tea and cake! Part of DATfest, which is going on all weekend!"

"This is a chance for interested parties to register their interest for a large showcase event to be held in July" [...] "Places are limited".

"Remember the cut-out pages we had in magazines when we were little, where you cut out the clothes and stick them on to the cutout doll? Well, I'm hoping to create a similar thing in Prototype. If you fancy your chances at getting your designs published, please email me your designs at prototypemag@gmail.com. Please draw them as working drawings, indicate colour/pattern. Winning design will be published! Remember you are designing for either a male or female student — aged 16-24, this issue's theme is Neon."

"By the summer, a new one-stop [online] shop will provide citizens with information about empty land and buildings they can develop to improve their local area."

"Betty Smithers Design Collection" gloves

"The Cultural Olympiad has long been a part of the modern Olympic movement. Between 1912 and 1948 medals were awarded for a range of cultural activities. Today we celebrate Staffordshire's achievements in music, art, drama, literature and architecture."

"ten-year framework for how the voluntary and community sector can stay financially resilient [and] suggests that individual giving can be increased from £11.3 billion to £20 billion by 2020 through increased donor engagement, better fundraising approaches and via a 'Better Asking' Campaign [...] The report also explores how to [...] increase trading income and commercial sector support and attract more private sector investment."

"spend approx. 3 months a year looking for documents [...] 87% of respondents spend up to 2 hours every day looking for documents"

"identify current methods of data collection and explore the best ways of using and collecting data. The audit will include recommendations on any improvements or additional methodologies that can be utilised. These are two hour sessions aimed at individual organisations (although several members of staff may wish to be present)."

Creating Characters, Saturday 19th March 2011. "Memorable characters drive plot and storyline. You don’t need to know everything about your characters before you begin writing, but it will save a lot of time if you have mapped out most of their lives and how they respond in different circumstances."

The Now Novel, Sunday 20th March 2011. "Stop dreaming and start writing. Stuck on page 20? Feel you’re never going to get to the end? The Now Novel is designed to get you writing and keep you going."

Writing from Experience, Saturday 16th April 2011. "All writers use their own life experience in their work. This day looks at different ways we can shape our memories and family history for others and the commercial market."

Writing for Performance, Sunday 17th April 2011. "Covers all aspects of writing for actors, radio, theatre, television and screen. We will explore how dialogue and conflict drive writing for performance."

Soap Opera Writing, Saturday 14th May 2011. "This is a group writing day and participants must be prepared to write with others."

Performance for Writers, Sunday 15th May 2011. "Standing up and performing your own work in front of others can be a daunting prospect; this workshop is designed to make you a confident deliverer of your own material."

"in 2009/10, private investment in culture stood at £658 million, a 3% decrease in real terms from the previous year."

"Have you recently finished University and [are you] unsure about how to make a living in the arts or creative industries? Do you want to use your skills to start your own business? Do you have project you'd like to get started? The Exchange is running an exclusive evening event with creative industries champion, Helga Henry of Fierce, who can help you find the answers to those questions. Helga will run a short, tailored session that will motivate you to take your idea and turn it into a reality."

"We can cater for all tastes and preferences, so if you have a particular concept in mind that you would like realising, come to us for expert assistance."

"a freelance general manager for BCB Ltd. BCB Ltd is an organisation being set up by Jeremy Theophilus and Barney Hare Duke to manage and deliver the British Ceramics Biennial Initiative in Stoke on Trent 2011-14. The position of general manager is a new one. Working closely with the BCB directors and as part of the BCB senior management team, the general manager will be instrumental in setting up the management, financial and administrative systems and procedures for the new organisation. They will also take on responsibility for developing the business, commercial and social enterprise side of the British Ceramics Biennial initiative. The general manager will be expected to work on a part-time basis, allocating time to the specified tasks of the role, and meeting the fluctuations in workload during the course of the year. A regular presence in Stoke-on-Trent will be essential. There is scope to further develop the role of the general manger to initiate and manage specific projects strengthening the BCB core areas of work and building the profile and impact of the initiative, leading to the third Biennial Festival in Stoke-on-Trent in October 2013. The position of general manger will be offered initially as a 12 month (renewable) freelance contract, with a fee of £14,000. An office space in Stoke-on-Trent will be provided for BCB Ltd. The BCB senior management team will work from this office base starting in February 2011. We are looking for someone who has the interest, time commitment, entrepreneurial imagination and experience and to take on this role, and contribute to the development of both the organisation and the project."

"still looking for artists and makers to sell in the shop — we'd especially like some sculpture... know anyone?"

"The day will consist of a chance to explore different ceramic techniques that can be used to produce a variety of forms, these will include slab built pieces, slip casting, the use of slip to create surface, different glazes, and the use of transfer imagery to create your own plate design. [...] no previous knowledge of working with clay and ceramics is required"

"The Magnum Workshop Derby, a five-day intensive, practice-oriented workshop focusing specifically on the popular theme of street photography."

"we aim to provoke the evolution of new thinking, curatorial development and exchange, social interaction and critical engagement, new collaborations and emerging networks. The scheme encourages risk taking and aims to showcase a wide array of aesthetics from both the city's vibrant visual, sound and film culture and far beyond. Projects can be activated in February-March, August-September and December 2011."

"30 different EU [trans-national] funding programmes or schemes that have provided support for arts and culture projects and activities" [with a] "special focus on the EU's Culture programme (2007-2013) which has a budget of 400 million Euros"

"The art work will dramatically animate the development of Chatterley Valley as a strategic gateway location".

"Is there a major conference that you have always wanted to attend, but never been able to afford? Personal members of the Federation can apply for a bursary for their first attendance at any residential conference organised by a museum-related group with a UK national remit. ... The bursary can be for any amount up to the total advertised cost of the conference, including conference and residential fees (travel to the venue is not included)."

"you will be shown many different techniques, including bonding, trapping, waxing and latexing recycled materials, including plastics, fabrics and papers."

The News UK interface is rather clunky compared to the slick websites of these newspapers, but you do get all the full-text articles — plus the ability to quickly keyword-search the archives (The Times archives from 1985-2011; The Financial Times from 1996-2011; The Economist from 1991-2011). Also available for free are a range of business and trade publications including Marketing Week.

"an ideal opportunity for writers of science fiction, fantasy and horror to get away from it all, meet and work with like-minded people and enjoy workshops and talks with established authors in the field. Offering workshops, feedback sessions and expert advice."

"Using drawings of Stafford, you'll complete the full creative process from plotting, pinning and threading to make your own unique A3 threaded drawing."

"Join wildlife photographer Craig Jones and the Trentham Deer Society for a day-long photography workshop, featuring Trentham's black fallow deer. Learn tracking and camera techniques to capture their beauty, expressions and behaviour in this stunning natural environment. Cost £99 per person including tea/coffee and lunch. Must pre-book in advance by contacting 01782 646646."

"The Hub has been set up to enable rural businesses to explore alternative business opportunities"

"a free club for all businesses in the region to join and contribute to. Each month we have speakers from our business network talking on a particular theme which are useful to all members."

"you are encouraged to come along where you can share / demonstrate or present your ideas to other like-minded individuals with a view to perhaps forming partnerships to aid the realisation of your ideas."

"Miles Templeman began his career as a marketing specialist and gained his pedigree leading such major consumer brands as Daz, Ribena and Lucozade, and was Marketing Director of Levi's. ... Miles is also a Board Member of Young Enterprise."

"a full day of workshops for you to find out about what really goes on in media, to develop key skills that will help you get ahead. Open to interested people aged over 21."

"Join us for a wonderful opportunity to extend your skills in singing, acting, moving and — if you are learning an instrument — playing! Ashley Thompson and Debbie McAndrew are the highly experienced artistic team who will be leading the project. Some experience would be valuable as the timescale is quite intensive, but if you are keen and prepared to work very hard and haven't done anything like this before then we'd still like to hear from you."

"for our 6th annual photographic competition & exhibition, we want you to focus on and document whatever is 'Green' in North Staffordshire. ... including green spaces and places, parks, gardens, buildings, canals, public art and sculpture, schools, colleges, events and festivals and anything else that you consider to be 'Green'."

"for 2011 — what skill would you like to swap or are you looking for a new collaborator? If so, can we help you find those people? The Exchange has some time and space for us to match you with someone you can learn from and/or collaborate with."

"Are you a student at Staffordshire University looking to start your own business: alongside your studies at Staffordshire University?; or instead of going into a company for your placement year? Or are you a Staffordshire University graduate who is looking to develop a business idea full or part-time?"

"There is a substantial amount of activity due to take place in North Shropshire, South Shropshire, Worcestershire and Staffordshire and we are particularly interested to hear from artists that would be able to work in these areas."

Audition: January 17th 2011.

Workshops are every Monday:

January 2011 – 24th, 31st.
February 2011 – 7th, 14th, 28th.
March 2011 – 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th.

Performance Date: 29th March 2011.

"join us for a day exploring the makers' role in the creation of consumer goods and developing relationships with industry to make extraordinary objects."

"Palindrome is a short experimental film that shows a story both forwards and backwards, that is both different and the same. The idea came from a personal interest in language form, and inspired by this I have been interested in finding a way of creating a palindromic piece of artwork."

"there will be plenary sessions, workshops and exchange platforms for artistic and cultural projects."

"a chance to get out of the (home) office and work alongside other like-minded business people, for a day, for free."

"An evening celebrating the Spode factory in Stoke, with a selection of archive films stretching back over eight decades. Also - a tribute to Robert Copeland, who frequently helped SFA celebrate Spode and narrated various films."

"You can expect to see a number of events and workshops centred around digital art, digital and social media."

"A celebration of all things animation in the West Midlands, the free Animation Forum WM and Flip event features a screening of locally produced shorts from Flip 2010, along with an introduction to Second Home Studios' Viral Kitchen scheme – which teams budding animators together to create an animated viral short. It's all followed by a free first drink on us at the iBar in Millennium Point, where there'll be the chance to rub shoulders with fellow animators."

"who can use their creative practice to help us understand the needs, values and ideas of all our stakeholders. Once we have consulted with our pupils, their parents and our community we would like to come together in designing, building or personalising an outdoor classroom space."

The Lost City of Stoke-on-Trent

"The Potteries are one of the strangest regions in the British Isles, and Matthew Rice's The Lost City of Stoke-on-Trent celebrates their extraordinary oddity."

Arnold Bennett's Uncollected Short Stories 1892-1932

Event 1: Saturday, 16th October 2010:

1pm – 2.30pm — Anna Francis: Walking in the City.

3pm – 4.00pm — The first episode of Talking City Live.

Anna will give a talk about her practice to date which explores the impact of art and culture on regeneration. Anna will discuss the varying activities that she finds herself undertaking in order to operate as an artist in the City.

Event 2: Saturday 23rd October 2010:

1pm – 2pm — Talking City: On Location in Stoke Town Tour

2pm – 5pm — Regenerating Stoke Town with Anna Francis

Anna will lead a tour of Stoke Town, which will attempt to point out the parts of the town that are working very well, as well as picking up on the areas which require the most interventions. This is a session for artists, encouraging new ways of looking and seeing. The afternoon will culminate in a re-visioning activity – to explore how artists could be involved in the regeneration process underway in the town.

"Join an action-packed and thought-provoking day of keynote speeches, workshops, presentations, discussion, showcase performance and debate across three strands. You can spend the day on one strand or drop in and out of all three.  1. The English Folk Dance & Song Society presents 'Folk Arts Education'; 2. The Musicians Union presents 'Making it in the Folk Music Business', and 3. FolkArts England presents 'The Complete Package / Selling Folk'."

"This course will teach you the principles of turning any image, be it a portrait, landscape, human body, any other three dimensional object you can think of into a mosaic with depth. It will give you the understanding how to achieve perspective, features, depth and the subtleties of light and shade in your work. This is a truly unique course, a rare chance to meet Saad during his short time in the UK and to learn from such an incredible master mosaicist and a modern day artistic genius. All you need to bring is an A4 or A3 drawing pad and pens including pencil, felts and marker pen, Gisela and Saad will provide the rest. Please note, you will NOT produce a mosaic in such a short time, but there will be practical work and you will have practical reminders of the principles involved to take home and introduce into your style of working."

"Thursday 21st October 2010, 10am - 4pm. We will be exploring the past present and future possibilities for the hidden gardens with guided magical mystery tours and surprising drawing activities with artists Anna Francis and Kate Lynch."

"How much do you know about private equity, an important asset class investing around £8bn a year into over 1,600 privately owned UK companies? Whether your business is seeking to expand, raise finance or make acquisitions (or be acquired), an understanding of private equity should be considered essential."

"workshops involve a range of practical group and individual activities and will equip you with the knowledge, skills and confidence to create your own Games inspired volunteering opportunities and get them advertised on the Do-it volunteering website."

"Overall, Creative Partnerships is estimated to have generated or is expected to generate a net positive economic benefit of just under £4bn. Expressed as a ratio of the benefits to the costs, we estimate that every £1 invested in the programme delivers £15.30 worth of benefits."

"R.T Dashes" Youth Theatre (ages 11-18), every Monday, 6.00pm - 7.30pm at The Victoria Hall. This is taught by professionally-trained actors, Victoria Gotham and Zoe Scott. Cost: £65 for the 10-week term (£60 families receiving benefits).

"R.T Dots" Youth Theatre ages 8-11, very Saturday, 10.30am - 12 noon at The Regent Theatre. Dynamic and fun classes with professional actresses and tutors Samantha Vaughan and Zoe Scott. Cost: £65 for the 10-week term (£60 families receiving benefits).

Adult Drama (ages 18+). Every Wednesday, 6pm - 8pm at The Victoria Hall. Explore different techniques of acting in a social and enjoyable environment, learn from a professional actor, with occasional theatre trips. Cost: £80 for the 10-week term (£74 for those receiving benefits).

"Lots of field barns are decaying through neglect, because they have fallen out of economic use. I'm interested in gathering our photographs together. Please add geographical information if possible. By doing this we can get an overview of the state of Field Barns. And by adding your pictures to the group, it may lead to your pictured barn gaining a new use for the 21st century."

"look at an important film produced by the city in 1925/26, reflecting on progress since 1910, together with extracts from Professor Johnson's forthcoming documentary film on Federation."

"will begin to explore and develop material for a site-specific dance designed to be seen from a window. Participants will look at ways of working with site, playing with the peculiar romance involved in trying to communicate across a distance. The work will be fun and accessible encouraging people to work to their own strengths. The residency will culminate in an informal sharing of the work in progress on the final day."

"People who hand-make artist books, zines and other paper ephemera."

"a high level programme for business leaders, senior managers or directors and aims to equip delegates with enhanced knowledge and practical tools to develop both personal and organisational skills."

"You will work with University Fine Art lecturers, and practising artists, on practical sessions which will equip you with the skills and knowledge to build a portfolio which will help when attending interviews (for courses or professional situations) or when pitching to clients and galleries. This programme is free, but you will need to provide your own materials and lunch."

Three sessions will run in November 2010, and then again in March 2011. These days will cover: "What is a Portfolio?"; "Building a Portfolio"; and a 30 minute portfolio review slot. Interested? Please email your details and reasons for wanting to attend, to: newgenerationspace@googlemail.com

"It is with great regret and reluctance that the Board of Script has taken the decision to dissolve the company as of the end of August 2010. The loss of [Arts Council] Regularly Funded Organisation status in March 2008 has had a serious impact on the company's resources, and the reliance on ever-decreasing pots of project funding has made its future existence unsustainable."

"to organisations in the North Staffordshire region to meet external funders and learn about funding opportunities. The free event is open to anyone from North Staffordshire, working in the voluntary and community sector, schools, social / community enterprises or is looking for funding."

"Often film-making and literary fiction are offered as a way of escaping the everyday, and particularly during bad times. It is often a dichotomy that this escapism also prevents us from dealing with the issues that need to be addressed (that, in a sense, have created the conditions for the need to escape). Escapism in such forms allows us to not only escape from our thoughts and concerns but also to remove ourselves geographically from our immediate environment or location."

"two gigantic industrial units, one mile north-east of Birmingham city centre — this August! These spaces are particularly suited to large-scale sculptures, performances, digital projection and installations"

"Urban Vision North Staffordshire is holding a conference in the autumn, looking at ways in which redundant heritage assets of the area could be bought back into sustainable use for the benefit of the community. The plan will be to identify a number of potential assets in the area, and look at ways in which Urban Vision can work with community groups to develop a heritage project that can meet a recognised need"

Community Liaison Officer – WEL/53637
Web Developer – WEL/53638
Graphic Designer -WEL/53640
MCA – WEL/5